On the Download
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
On the Download heRobust has a 'Screw Loose' again
Posted by Rodney Carmichael on Tue, Sep 25, 2012 at 2:03 PM
heRobust, the ever-prolific producer and recent CL Best of Atlanta critic's pick winner, drops projects so fast it's hard to keep up. Released this month, his latest EP Screw Loose (Muti Records) features his signature blend of manipulated samples, downtempo beats, and glitch-hop, similar in sound to his impressive early-2012 double-release Late Night and Morning After.
Like Rob & Hood before it, he's still having fun with the titles on this one: "Bubba Sparkles" kicks off the five-track EP with a mellow funk intro, the synthed-out "WalMartian" marks the halfway point, and "Bandana Pancakes," with it's jazzy sonic palette full of bleeps and blips, goes down easy like blue-light-in-the-basement electro for grown folk.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
On the Download / New Music Pill really aint stettin yall
Posted by Rodney Carmichael on Wed, Aug 8, 2012 at 11:28 AM
Still one of the most authentic street emcees to come out of Atlanta, Pill preps us for the release of his next mixtape, Over the Counter Drugs, with "Aint Stettin Yall." Produced by Basement Beatz, the sped-up old soul vocal sample echoes the angst in Pill's voice.
Friday, August 3, 2012
On the Download / New Music Madam CJ wants you to 'Smell Urself’ this Sunday
Posted by Carlton Hargro on Fri, Aug 3, 2012 at 1:48 PM
ATL soul scenester/singer Madam CJ is back at it again.
This Sunday, the Tennessee native is dropping some fresh music — two new versions of her single “Smell Urself,” remixed by UK-born and Atlanta-based producer Daz-I-Kue. (The tracks are actually the premiere releases for the Daz-owned I-Kue Recordings.)
You can download your own personal mp3s come Aug. 5, but before you drop any cash, take a listen to the tracks below:
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
On the Download New Music: Mike Will Made It, 'Fightin Words' feat. T.I., Juicy J, Trae the Truth
Posted by Rodney Carmichael on Tue, Jul 17, 2012 at 5:25 PM
Atlanta producer Mike Will Made It is having a helluva year. One that includes singles with 2 Chainz & Drake (“No Lie”), Juicy J (“Bands A Make Her Dance”), Future (“Turn On the Lights”), Young Jeezy (“Way Too Gone”), and Gucci Mane (“Plain Jane”). I overheard someone at Grady Hospital over the weekend (don't ask) describe his sound as one that bears elements of Houston's screw, Memphis' crunk and Atlanta's trunk music — which is funny considering "Fightin Words," the latest leak from his forthcoming Est in 1989 Part 2 mixtape, which drops next Tuesday, features artists from all three locales.
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
On the Download / New Music Download Mach Five's Ratchet Sh*t Vol. 2
Posted by Gabe Vodicka on Tue, Apr 24, 2012 at 2:08 PM
As promised, today sees the release of the second installment in local hip-hop duo Mach Five's Ratchet Shit trilogy. The group's been on a steady schedule of solid new releases for the better part of a year now, and this new joint doesn't disappoint. Along with the already released "Breaking My Heart," a smooth tune that features Hollyweerd and Bilal - you know, the one that got the Spike Lee treatment in a video released just last week - the Asston Kusher-produced EP features some characteristically drug-addled Memphian-esque grooves ("P.B.R.") and an atonal, semi-deranged banger in set closer "Chandeliers."
Altogether, another wildly strong outing from these dudes. If you haven't been paying attention already, you should probably do so.
Download via Mediafire or stream on Bandcamp. Tracklist and back cover beneath the jump.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
On the Download / New Music LISTEN: Mach Five, "Breaking My Heart" ft. Bilal, Hollyweerd
Posted by Rodney Carmichael on Tue, Apr 10, 2012 at 6:00 PM
It's been five years since Maurice Garland coined the term "Otherground Atlanta" to describe that indefinable space occupied by all the emcees and artists who were too weird for the city's mainstream foothold and too quirky and experimental for the underground. We're talking that Broke $ Bougee, fuck-that-hipster-shit, pre-"blog rap" era when Atlanta acts like Proton, Gripplyaz, Yelawolf, Dreamer, even B.o.B, Janelle Monáe, and Jaspects were coming into their own and reupholstering the sound of Atlanta. It was less grills 'n' grit, more glow-in-the-dark ghetto glam.
Mach Five's newly released jam "Breaking My Heart, featuring crooner Bilal and one-half of Hollyweerd (Chris McADoo, saxophonist Staggo Lee), reminds me of the era the produced the class of 2007/2008, partly because the landscape has changed so much since then. Some cats matured, while others disappeared. (R.I.P. Proton) Then some metamorphosed into a whole new thing, trading local stages (Drunken Unicorn, the old-new Lenny's before it closed) for cyberspace. Mach Five regularly appeared on near-weekly/bi-weekly show bills back then, alongside other scene stalwarts like Hollyweerd, Sean Falyon, Wil May, Muffy, etc. But if Mach Five were the playground freshmen five years ago, they're playboy statesmen now, with a prolific sound and visual style so self-assured it's hard not to buy into it.
"Breaking My Heart" is the first single from their third project (Ratchet Shit Vol. 2, due April 24) in the last seven months. And with its release they're already teasing the forthcoming Spike Lee-inspired video which is supposed to drop next week.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
On the Download / Reviews / New Music '431 Days' after his release, Trouble counts the price of freedom
Posted by Rodney Carmichael on Tue, Mar 27, 2012 at 7:00 PM
Four hundred thirty-one. Number of days Edgewood rapper and Duct Tape label affiliate Trouble's been out of the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary. Hence the name of his new mixtape, 431 Days, the follow-up to his critically acclaimed debut mixtape, December 17, so named for the day he was released from the pen in 2010.
Based on those titles alone, it would be fair to assume that Trouble relishes freedom. It's a safe assumption, especially on such standouts as the appropriately titled "Free" and "All I'm Worried About." But it doesn't mean he's above paying lyrical homage to the lifestyle that got him locked down inside that imposing big house, located at the dead end of Boulevard, in the first place. From the sounds of 431 Days, Trouble's still knee-deep, sometimes even wallowing in it. Figuratively-speaking, of course. He's certainly more interested in conveying his pain than gaining entry to Atlanta's bottle-poppin', celebrity trap-star set. He saves little room for pop radio fodder, even when acquiescing to an R&B hook, courtesy Verse Simmonds, on the down-ass-chick anthem "Would You?" And on the FKi-produced track custom-built for him to ball out — "Hustle & Ambition" ft. Gucci Mane — he talks about his preference for women who value good credit over Gucci shoes. This isn't fantasy rap; it's theme music for soldiers still surviving the nightmare with a heavy heart and a sober outlook. Trouble is so obsessed with staying true — to his people, his environment, his word — it's hard to imagine how he's made it past 431 Days. The fact that he has may prove he's driven by something beyond the trappings of rap fame.
Indeed, his come-up is best summed up with a question posed by mixtape host Bigga Rankin: "This last 431 days, my nigga, you've been blessed with a burden. You got the whole mob depending on you, my nigga. How does that weigh on your soul, man? How does that weigh on your soul?"
Download at livemixtapes.com. Tracklist and videos below the jump:
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
On the Download Humpday Funk: 'Get Cozy' with DJ Cozy Shawn
Posted by Rodney Carmichael on Wed, Mar 21, 2012 at 10:12 AM
My only dream in life is to own a pimped-out black-on-black 1970 Cadillac hearse with nothing but the funk bumpin' out the back. So far the closest I've been able to get is this new Cozy Shawn mix. And that's damn close.
If you ever stepped foot inside the MJQ café (aka the back room) back in the day, you're already hip to DJ Cozy Shawn's type of get-down. His latest residency, so to speak, happens online every week at SoulandJazz.com, where he cues up an endless stream of classic ’70s grooves and funk. He kicked off his March 13 debut episode with Willie Hutch's oft-sampled 1973 joint "Tell Me, Why Has Our Love Turned Cold." Need I say more?
New "Get Cozy" podcast mixes drop every Tuesday, with complete tracklists, and previous episodes are available for download. This week's edition is a family affair; a jazzy, soulful mix (featuring Earth Wind & Fire, M.F.S.B., Lonnie Liston Smith, and plenty more) Shawn calls The Austin Family Edition: Vol. 1 and dedicates to his parents and NYC birthplace:
My parents will always be the coolest, hippest & smartest people I know. Their taste in groovy music continues to be the backbone of my sound as a DJ & tastemaker of cool & funky grooves. Growing up in the NYC Metro area in the 1970’s, 80’s, & early 90’s provided the perfect backdrop for them to enjoy all that the NYC nightlife had to offer in their leisure time — being original patrons of Studio 54 & well versed in the uptown & downtown Manhattan’s hip scene throughout the 70’s & 80’s! They are what you would say….a jazzy couple, exposing my sister & myself to all of the coolest of hip sounds. This then is an episode of Get Cozy that’s an example of the soulful, jazzy & funky sounds that my parents use to rock on vinyl at the crib.
Thursday, March 1, 2012
On the Download / New Music Download Mach Five's Ratchet Sh*t Vol. 1
Posted by Gabe Vodicka on Thu, Mar 1, 2012 at 12:37 PM
A week after dropping "Molly (On My Tongue)," a skewed banger featuring Danny Brown, enterprising Atlanta duo Mach Five have offered up a new five song EP, titled Ratchet Shit Vol. 1, via their Bandcamp page. The album - presented by 2DopeBoyz and hosted by OG Ron C - includes the aforementioned Brown collab and also features a guest spot by Memphis' poet laureate Project Pat ("Problemz").
The group has made it available for free on Bandcamp; here's a Mediafire link just in case.
Back cover (w/tracklist) beneath the jump.
Friday, February 10, 2012
On the Download Eric Roberson drops When Love Calls
Posted by Carlton Hargro on Fri, Feb 10, 2012 at 4:39 PM
The compilation brings together 14 of Roberson's most-loved love songs, including "One Time" (a duet with Jill Scott), "Softest Lips," "Head to Toe," "She" and many other tunes to set the mood.
Want to snag a copy (most likely to help you get your freak on)? Purchase "When Love Calls" on iTunes.
Stream the entire album on Roberson's website.
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